Are Worcester manager finalists up to snuff?

The search for Worcester's seventh city manager in 64 years, and third in less than nine months, has basically come down this:

An individual who was a finalist for the city manager's job in Lowell earlier this year but failed to make the cut;

A lawyer who has been in Worcester municipal government for more than 30 years;

And an individual who is looking for a job after being let go as a town manager in March.

None of them is currently serving as a city manager, assistant city manager, town manager or a chief operating officer of a municipality or private company. In fact, two of the three finalists were terminated in their last stints as the chief executive of their respective communities. That is in sharp contrast to Worcester's last city manager search in 1993, in which the finalists included city managers of Toledo, Ohio; Oakland, Calif.; and North Miami Beach, Fla.; as well as a managing partner of a major company based out of Pensacola, Fla.

The other two finalists that year also included the town manager of Amherst, and the chief operating and financial officer of the city of Boston.

When the City Council embarked earlier this year on a search for a new city manager, some city councilors believed it would attract candidates of similar stature, and perhaps even better, from across the country. They boasted about how the city manager's job was going to be so highly coveted because of all the good things happening in Worcester.

But when all was said and done, were those expectations met?

"There were definitely high expectations going into this search," said Councilor-at-Large Frederick C. Rushton. "After having outstanding city managers like Mike O'Brien and Ed Augustus, we were looking for nothing less than a five-star manager who can keep the momentum going in this city."

"We want to hit a home run with this selection. The people in this city deserve nothing less," he added. "In my eyes, that is what I am looking for."

The three finalists are: Peter Graczykowski of Edgartown, a consultant with Guidepoint Global Advisors of New York; David M. Moore of Worcester, the city's chief lawyer since 1993; and Oscar S. Rodriguez, former town manager of Taos, N.M.

Mr. Rushton was not involved in the closed-door interview process of the semifinalists that was conducted by the City Council Municipal Operations Committee and Mayor Joseph M. Petty. He said all he knows about the finalists, aside from Mr. Moore, is what he has seen on their resumes and, for that reason, is looking forward to the council's public interviews of each finalist on Sept. 11.

"Maybe when we have the public interviews, I will see them in a different light," Mr. Rushton said. But District 1 Councilor Tony Economou, a member of the Municipal Operations Committee that interviewed the five semifinalists, feels stronger about the three finalists.

"They are very qualified individuals and can lead this city to the next level," Mr. Economou said.

So, just who are these finalists?

Mr. Graczykowski has experience as city manager; he was chief executive of East Providence, R.I., from 2011 to 2013. He was terminated without cause by the East Providence City Council in November 2013, and after that moved on to Guidepoint Global Advisors, doing consulting and research for corporations and institutional investment firms globally.

As city manager in East Providence, he oversaw a $170 million annual budget. His strengths are said to be in the area of fiscal affairs. In East Providence, he eliminated a $14 million budget deficit and achieved a budget surplus of $8.8 million in fiscal 2012 and $3.5 million in fiscal 2013. Through his management, he also was able to secure higher bond ratings for East Providence.

He cites as his major accomplishments city/school consolidations in the areas of IT, facilities, human resources and finance. Those consolidations produced a savings of more than $500,000, he said. He also negotiated city and school employee contracts with significant health care and other-post employment benefit concessions.

Mr. Moore is the lone familiar face among the three finalists. He has been with the city since 1982, when then-City Manager Francis J. McGrath hired him as parking administrator. He later moved on to become an assistant city solicitor, and then in 1993, he became city solicitor.

Interestingly, the city has never had a lawyer as its city manager. Some City Hallers thought Mr. Moore was going to be named interim city manager when Michael V. O'Brien stepped down in January, but the council passed on him, and instead chosen someone outside of City Hall when it named Edward M. Augustus Jr. as city manager for a nine-month period, running through Oct. 3.

On the plus side, Mr. Moore knows Worcester, understands its form of government and its challenges, and is well-known and respected by city department heads, elected officials, local legislators and the business community.

As city solicitor, he has been heavily involved in the city's economic development agenda, including negotiation of development agreements, project financing, property acquisition and disposition, as well as zoning, planning and environmental permitting.

So, he is no stranger to Worcester, the issues it faces and the players at City Hall. But such familiarity could be a double-edged sword.

Mr. Rodriguez is the first minority candidate to be interviewed for the city manager's job. To this point, the job has been held by white males. He was town manager of Taos from May 2012 until this past March, when the town council replaced both him and the town attorney just six months after he received a very favorable job review by the council. According to stories that appeared in the Taos News, Mr. Rodriguez appeared to have fallen out of favor with his bosses for various reasons. After he lost that job, he applied for the position of city administrator in Augusta, Ga., and was a finalist there, though he did not get the job.

As town manager in Taos, Mr. Rodriguez is credited with leading the town through a major financial and organizational restructuring. The major projects he oversaw include airport expansion and the repurposing of a convention center. He has also served as assistant city manager of Del Rio, Texas, (1989 to 1992), and assistant city manager of Austin, Texas, (1992 to 1996). In addition, he served executive director of the Maryland-National Capital Park & Planning Commission and held government positions for the District of Columbia.

District 2 Councilor Philip P. Palmieri, chairman of the Municipal Operations Committee, insists the field of finalists is a good one.

"We're very pleased with the finalists that we have," he said.

So, now it's on to the public interviews next month, when the City Council and the public at large will be able to get a better sense of each finalist.

Contact Nick Kotsopoulos at nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @NCKotsopoulos